Just now getting into the In the Meantime album, having only briefly scanned over it a few years back and picking out Friend as the only standout track and dismissing the rest as redundant easy listening. Listening to it again there's certainly more than that- Calumny, Northern Star, etc. Not sure how I feel about the funkier tunes like Anything is Possible, gonna have to give it another try.

What I do like is that while most of the tracks are not particularly memorable musically (though Christine sounds amazing on ALL of them) they do all gel together really well. I also like the overall story of the album: it starts off alone and yearning, a relationship develops, it ends badly and causes a mix of angsty feelings, and finally concludes with acceptance. It's a neat concept and would have been a great idea for a FM album with all three singers narrating their own journey.

What do you guys think of In the Meantime, especially after all of these years? I'd be interested in what impressions people have of the songs on an individual basis.

__________________
"I am just one small part of forever" -Think About It (The song that got me into Stevie Nicks)

"The face of a pretty girl x1,000,000" -Isn't It Midnight (The song that got me into Christine McVie)

"The sun is bright, but not too bright to see. When the darkness comes you've got to fly into the light." -Doing What I Can (The song that got me into Lindsey Buckingham)

"I can still hear you saying you would never break the chain" -The Chain (The song that got me into Fleetwood Mac)

I love In The Meantime. "You Are" is every bit as enjoyable as "Friend". "Bad Journey" seems to carry forward the themes explored in "Homeward Bound" from Bare Trees and "Hollywood (Some Other Kind Of Town" from Time. Standouts for me include "Liar" and "Sweet Revenge", and I think the album wraps up quite nicely with "Givin' It Back".

ITM is a great sleeper, a cool project we didn’t see coming. It got very mixed reviews when it first appeared—the usual Christine criticism: she’s great in the band but on her own a bit bland. Honestly, I did NOT agree this time out.

One of the obvious shortcomings of the 1984 record was its bid for wide commercial appeal. This went against much of what made Christine’s musical style so appealing. On that record, the standout tracks—“One in a Million” and “Smile I Live For”—capture two very different features of her musical identity: the earthy blues and the haunting ballad. Other than those tracks (and a couple of others slightly below them in quality) that solo record did not seem genuine to me. It felt calculated, and it suffered because of it.

By contrast, ITM emerged organically as a project that affirmed Christine’s desire to create music on her own terms. As a result, she sounds relaxed, and the musical environment of the record suits her perfectly. The ballads—“Calumny” and “Northern Star—might have been written by Dan Perfect but they “perfectly” suit her voice and attack. Likewise, the catchy, mid-tempo numbers—“So Sincere”, “Friend”, and “You Are”—have a quiet fire that simmers underneath the pop craftsmanship. But, for me anyway, the album’s best moments are the R&B-inflected numbers like “Anything is Possible,” “Bad Journey”, “Forgiveness” and the driving “Liar”. These songs show her at her sauciest. Top that with the lovely closer, “Giving it Back”, a tune worthy of The Eagles at their best, and you have a remarkable suite of songs that hangs together nicely.

My only complaint is that the acoustic version of “Friend” was not available on the disc as well. THAT arrangement of the tune is better than anything on the album!

ITM is a great sleeper, a cool project we didn’t see coming. It got very mixed reviews when it first appeared—the usual Christine criticism: she’s great in the band but on her own a bit bland. Honestly, I did NOT agree this time out.

One of the obvious shortcomings of the 1984 record was its bid for wide commercial appeal. This went against much of what made Christine’s musical style so appealing. On that record, the standout tracks—“One in a Million” and “Smile I Live For”—capture two very different features of her musical identity: the earthy blues and the haunting ballad. Other than those tracks (and a couple of others slightly below them in quality) that solo record did not seem genuine to me. It felt calculated, and it suffered because of it.

By contrast, ITM emerged organically as a project that affirmed Christine’s desire to create music on her own terms. As a result, she sounds relaxed, and the musical environment of the record suits her perfectly. The ballads—“Calumny” and “Northern Star—might have been written by Dan Perfect but they “perfectly” suit her voice and attack. Likewise, the catchy, mid-tempo numbers—“So Sincere”, “Friend”, and “You Are”—have a quiet fire that simmers underneath the pop craftsmanship. But, for me anyway, the album’s best moments are the R&B-inflected numbers like “Anything is Possible,” “Bad Journey”, “Forgiveness” and the driving “Liar”. These songs show her at her sauciest. Top that with the lovely closer, “Giving it Back”, a tune worthy of The Eagles at their best, and you have a remarkable suite of songs that hangs together nicely.

My only complaint is that the acoustic version of “Friend” was not available on the disc as well. THAT arrangement of the tune is better than anything on the album!

I agree with everything you said except one thing
I agree that ITM is more genuine Christine McVie than her 1984 solo album. She was under no pressure and it was just her pleasure recording when she wanted to at her house with her nephew. What an incredible experience that was!!
I would not call her 1984 solo outing "calculating." The reason part of the album ventures off the traditional Christine McVie was because she did not want to do the album alone. Warner Brothers wanted a solo album from her and probably gave her a nice advance to do so. She met Todd Sharpe during Mick's solo outings and he also played in Bob Welch's band. She told Todd she wanted him to do her solo album with. So we get songs written by Todd that Christine sings like I'm The One which is not a typical Christine song. At the time, I loved the idea and sound. She stepped out of her comfort zone. 30 +years later I look back and wish the entire album was just her. I love the idea she did not do a pure pop album. There is no cheezy 80's sound on it which is refreshing to hear. There are amazing songs on her 1984 solo album: The Smile I Live For, The Challenge, Ask Anybody, etc. Those are so rich in Christine goodness. Christine is not a solo star. She needs and loves to work with someone else or an entire band. She hit the nail on the head when in 1984 she said her solo album was not the most adventurous album in the world but it was pleasing to her own ears. That was so TRUE. Her 1984 album had mixed reviews. One article stated her album lacked musical muscle even though Eric Clapton, Lindsey Buckingham, and Mick Fleetwood play on it. They stated the songs were not wimpy but failed to energize the listener.

__________________Still I believe.....BACKSTABBING AND BETRAYAL will show us how

I agree with everything you said except one thing
I agree that ITM is more genuine Christine McVie than her 1984 solo album. She was under no pressure and it was just her pleasure recording when she wanted to at her house with her nephew. What an incredible experience that was!!
I would not call her 1984 solo outing "calculating." The reason part of the album ventures off the traditional Christine McVie was because she did not want to do the album alone. Warner Brothers wanted a solo album from her and probably gave her a nice advance to do so. She met Todd Sharpe during Mick's solo outings and he also played in Bob Welch's band. She told Todd she wanted him to do her solo album with. So we get songs written by Todd that Christine sings like I'm The One which is not a typical Christine song. At the time, I loved the idea and sound. She stepped out of her comfort zone. 30 +years later I look back and wish the entire album was just her. I love the idea she did not do a pure pop album. There is no cheezy 80's sound on it which is refreshing to hear. There are amazing songs on her 1984 solo album: The Smile I Live For, The Challenge, Ask Anybody, etc. Those are so rich in Christine goodness. Christine is not a solo star. She needs and loves to work with someone else or an entire band. She hit the nail on the head when in 1984 she said her solo album was not the most adventurous album in the world but it was pleasing to her own ears. That was so TRUE. Her 1984 album had mixed reviews. One article stated her album lacked musical muscle even though Eric Clapton, Lindsey Buckingham, and Mick Fleetwood play on it. They stated the songs were not wimpy but failed to energize the listener.

Yes, I’m well aware of all of this, having tracked Christine’s career and the media attention she’s received throughout the years. I stick by my assessment, though: the 1984 album may have begun as a collaboration between two close friends wth musical compatibility, but the label wanted a hit, BIG hit. Many of the songs on the record feel like they are attempts to exploit 80s pop trends instead of letting the album emerge more organically. You may not feel so, but I definitely consider much of the album (minus the three songs I mentioned earlier) a calculation that never fully paid off.

Yes, I’m well aware of all of this, having tracked Christine’s career and the media attention she’s received throughout the years. I stick by my assessment, though: the 1984 album may have begun as a collaboration between two close friends wth musical compatibility, but the label wanted a hit, BIG hit. Many of the songs on the record feel like they are attempts to exploit 80s pop trends instead of letting the album emerge more organically. You may not feel so, but I definitely consider much of the album (minus the three songs I mentioned earlier) a calculation that never fully paid off.

One influence I think Todd had over Christine's music was how country sounding many of the songs were. Songs like Love will show us how, I'm so excited, and I'm the one are very country music sounding IMHO.

__________________Still I believe.....BACKSTABBING AND BETRAYAL will show us how

One influence I think Todd had over Christine's music was how country sounding many of the songs were. Songs like Love will show us how, I'm so excited, and I'm the one are very country music sounding IMHO.

Yeah--Todd got her to rock, too. In his Q&A here, he mentioned how LWSUH started off much more slowly and softly. Strange, huh?

In terms of style, So Excited reminds me a little bit of "For You" from her Christine Perfect record, though So Excited is more mature and accomplished.

Yeah--Todd got her to rock, too. In his Q&A here, he mentioned how LWSUH started off much more slowly and softly. Strange, huh?

In terms of style, So Excited reminds me a little bit of "For You" from her Christine Perfect record, though So Excited is more mature and accomplished.

I re-listened to both albums and can't believe how much I love both of them. Not because I'm her fan; but, because the music moved me. I thought of Buckingham/McVie and realize how HUGE she is in terms of influence of the band.

If I had to choose, I would agree that Christine is "the voice of Fleetwood Mac," a voice that so regularly came through the radio when I was growing up: You Make Lovin Fun, Don't Stop, Little Lies, Everywhere..., and all her background vocals. And of course the Early Years as well.

Stevie has always had one of the most unique voices out there--her detractors might say 'to a fault.'
And Lindsey's voice has always been quite idiosyncratic as well IMO (such as tendency for it to be uncannily boyish ("Lindsey is a man?" my friends would say) or heavily altered in the studio).
So Christine's 'vanilla' voice doesn't stand much of a chance by comparison to these two. Yet her voice, too, is also very unique. Deep and business-like, without much acrobatics. Smooth and creamy, no froth.

When In the Meantime came out I liked the actual songs a lot but I was annoyed with the album itself--in that it was frustrating as an FM fan to have Say You Will over here and In the Meantime over there. But now, after seeing how everything has panned out 15 years later, I feel very lucky that we got this 'Perfectly produced' album. Very lucky indeed!

I was flabbergasted when, in some interview after rejoining FM, she made an offhand remark about ITM to the effect that "It probably wasn't very good." I understand and appreciate her self-effacing British manner, but it seemed a bit of a slight against her nephew and all the others who would have poured a lot of themselves into it. (It's not like her nephew has a Rumours he can fall back on, reputation wise.) In any case, in my perhaps unpopular opinion, ITM is leaps and bounds in front of BuckVie (from a Christine-centric perspective), so thank god (or Dan) that we have it.

I haven't listened to In the Meantime in several years. I remember thinking how great her voice sounded, though, and wishing we could've had the best cuts from ITM on SYW. The stand-outs to me were "Friend" and "Calumny." I should give it another listen.